Objective
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This policy document covers operating procedures of ACC.
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Definitions
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ACC: ANSI Accreditation Committee.
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Introduction
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The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) operates an accreditation program for products, processes, and services certification programs to ensure that the market, including public agencies and public interest organizations, can rely on the competence of ANSI accredited bodies.
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Authority
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These procedures provide for the operation of the ANSI Accreditation Committee (ACC) in accordance with the requirements of Sections 6.09 to 6.09.6 and 6.12 of Article VI of the ANSI Bylaws, and for the implementation of Committee accreditation functions defined in the following documents:
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PRO-PL-101: Policy and criteria for accreditation of product certification
programs
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PRO-PL-102: Manual of operations for accreditation of product certification programs
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ISO/IEC 17065:2012, Conformity assessment - Requirements for bodies certifying products, processes and services
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ISO/IEC 17011:2017, Conformity assessment - Requirements for accreditation bodies accrediting conformity assessment bodies
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ANSI Accreditation Committee
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The ANSI Accreditation Committee for product certification programs was established by the ANSI Board of Directors to be responsible for the operational aspects of ANSI's accreditation programs and related activities, except as otherwise provided in the ANSI Bylaws or in procedures approved by the ANSI Conformity Assessment Policy Committee and the ANSI Board of Directors.
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The responsibilities of the Committee include:
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developing and approving policies for the operation of the accreditation program;
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providing feedback on procedures and criteria for assessment, as requested;
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reviewing the process of assessment and granting, maintaining, extending, reducing,
suspending, and withdrawing accreditation (the accreditation decision);
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providing feedback on the implementation of Accreditation Program policies, as
requested; and
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delegating authority to organizations, committees or individuals, as required, to
undertake defined operational activities on its behalf.
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The responsibilities of ANSI Accreditation Committee members include:
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 | attending at least 2 one-day meetings a year; |
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| serving on task group s/sub-committees as appointed by this Committee; |
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| serving on Evaluation Task Groups as volunteers to evaluate the accreditation process
and recommending actions to this Committee; |
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| serving on appeals panels as appointed by the committee; and |
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| providing timely feedback/responses to ballots/requests from ANSI. |
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Governance and Structure within ANSI
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The ANSI Accreditation Committee develops and approves policies for the operation of
the accreditation body, as empowered by the ANSI Conformity Assessment Policy
Committee. The accreditation program, including the ANSI Accreditation Committee’s
own activities, operates under these policies. The Conformity Assessment Policy
Committee reports to the Executive Committee of the ANSI Board of Directors.
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The Vice President for Accreditation Services has responsibility for supervising the
implementation of the policies and procedures, finances of the accreditation body, and
any contractual arrangements. The Vice President for Accreditation Services may
delegate all or some of these responsibilities to the Program Director and/or Director of
Accreditation Services at his/her discretion.
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The ANSI organizational structure is designed to separate all education and training
activities from Accreditation Services (see ANSI organizational structure at:
http://www.ansi.org).
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ANSI shall appoint a non-voting staff secretary for the ANSI Accreditation Committee.
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Membership
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ANSI Accreditation Committee membership shall consist of a balanced representation of
all parties interested in the accreditation of products, processes and services certification
programs. Criteria for membership include personnel attributes, expertise that
complements that of current membership, experience in the conformity assessment field,
and membership within ANSI. Attendance at a formal orientation program is mandatory
for new members and ongoing annual training is required for all ANSI Accreditation
Committee members. Total membership will be limited to ensure operational
effectiveness. However, the ANSI Accreditation Committee should endeavor to
disseminate information to and receive input from stakeholders across the United States
involved in the certification of products, processes, and services.
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The ANSI Accreditation Committee shall have a voting membership of not less than ten
and not more than eighteen persons. ANSI Accreditation Committee vacancies created by
members leaving before the expiration of their terms may be filled for the remainder of
the term. Nominations for each ANSI Accreditation Committee member and voting
alternate(s) will be submitted by the ANSI Accreditation Committee Chair for
confirmation by the Conformity Assessment Policy Committee.
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The Committee's voting membership shall include representatives from industry,
government, conformity assessment, and other interests concerned with products,
processes and services certification activities. Any single- interest category shall be
limited to less than one half of the actual ANSI Accreditation Committee membership.
Ideally, representation should conform to the following from the eighteen members of the
Committee: industry (5), federal and state government (5), conformity assessment
organizations (5), and at-large stakeholders (3).
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Members may designate an alternate from the same interest category. An alternate may
vote and act on behalf of the member at meetings, when the member is absent. State
regulatory agency representatives may have more than one alternate, if such alternates are
from other state regulatory agencies. Representatives from state regulatory agencies may
also share the membership seat, but only one state regulatory agency representative will
be allowed to vote at a meeting.
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Members shall be appointed for a term of three years and shall be eligible for
reappointment for two additional terms. When a member resigns before the end of the
term and is replaced by a new member, the new member serves until the end of his/her
predecessor’s term of office. If this period is one year or less, it is considered a
preliminary term and does not count toward the three-term limit; if it is more than one year, it is considered a full term. The intention of this procedure is to maintain the
continuity of the ANSI Accreditation Committee members.
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A membership roster shall be maintained and published by ANSI at least annually.
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A member who has decided to resign shall submit a letter of resignation to the Chair with
a copy to the ANSI staff secretary.
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Officers
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ANSI Accreditation Committee officers shall consist of a Chairperson and Vice-Chair.
Each officer shall serve for a term of one calendar year or until a successor takes office.
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Each officer shall be elected and shall be eligible for re-election in accordance with ANSI
Bylaws.
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Subcommittees, Task Groups, and Liaisons
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The ANSI Accreditation Committee may establish subcommittees and task groups to
advise it on its activities. Members of such subcommittees and task groups other than the
subcommittee or task force leader need not be members of the Committee. The ANSI
Accreditation Committee shall select persons to serve on subcommittees, task groups,
and as liaisons, based on their recognized technical expertise.
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Nominations and Elections
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The Chair of the ANSI Accreditation Committee shall appoint in the last meeting of each
year a Nominating Committee of not less than three Committee members to serve until
December 31st of the following year. By majority vote, on or before October 31st of
each year, the Nominating Committee shall nominate the following:
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candidates to serve as Chair and Vice-Chair; and
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candidates for Committee membership to fill vacancies and expired terms.
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ANSI has a procedure for soliciting names from other Committee members and from
other interested parties. The Nominating Committee shall forward its annual nominating
report to the staff secretary, who shall submit it to the ANSI Accreditation Committee.
Other nominations may be submitted by a petition signed by at least five ANSI
Accreditation Committee members prior to October 15th of each year. At the last
Committee meeting of the calendar year, the ANSI Accreditation Committee shall elect
individuals for each officer position for the succeeding year, and vote on memberships to
fill vacancies and expired terms, as appropriate. The staff secretary shall forward the names of new Committee members to the Conformity Assessment Policy Committee for
confirmation.
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ANSI Accreditation Committee Meetings
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The Committee shall hold a minimum of three regularly scheduled meetings each year.
A schedule of the meeting dates, times, and locations shall be established at the beginning
of each year. The staff secretary shall distribute the schedule to the ANSI Accreditation
Committee members. The schedule may subsequently be changed at the discretion of
ANSI Accreditation Committee members. A schedule of ANSI Accreditation Committee
meetings will be placed on the ANSI website as public information.
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The Chair may call special meetings. The staff secretary may also call a special meeting
on receipt of a petition signed by at least fifty percent of the current ANSI Accreditation
Committee voting membership.
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The staff secretary shall give notice of all meetings at least fourteen days before the
meeting date. The notice shall include a preliminary meeting agenda containing the
principal items to be considered.
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At ANSI Accreditation Committee meetings, the presence of a simple majority of the
current ANSI Accreditation Committee voting membership, which includes members
who are participating by phone/internet/video-teleconference, shall constitute a quorum.
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The staff secretary shall be responsible for the preparation of minutes of all Committee
meetings. Minutes shall be issued in a timely manner to all ANSI Accreditation
Committee members, but no later than three weeks prior to the next meeting. Minutes
shall be electronically distributed. Measures shall be taken to safeguard the confidential
minutes to ensure only authorized individuals have access to them. The minutes shall be
approved at the next ANSI Accreditation Committee meeting.
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The Committee Chair has the discretion of making any ANSI Accreditation Committee
meeting open to the public.
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Committee Action
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The following actions shall require approval by two-thirds (2/3) of the participating ANSI
Accreditation Committee voting members, excluding abstentions, but not less than a
majority of the total voting membership. Voting may be at a meeting or by
letter/electronic ballot. Voting results are to be recorded and kept on file according to
ANSI records management procedures, as follows:
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final action by the Committee related to granting, denying, maintaining, extending,
reducing, suspending, and withdrawing accreditation; and
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ANSI Accreditation Committee approval of any proposed changes to documents.
Revised ANSI Accreditation Committee documents must be circulated for public
comment for a period of 60 days. Following incorporation of public comment and
approval by the ANSI Accreditation Committee, the final version of the three policies
below must be submitted for approval by the Conformity Assessment Policy
Committee.
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| PRO-PL-101: Policy and criteria for accreditation of product certification
programs |
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| PRO-PL-102: Manual of operations for accreditation of product certification
programs |
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| PRO-PL-103: Operating procedures of the accreditation committee |
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The letter ballot voting period shall last at least three weeks and the results of the ballot shall remain confidential within the Committee, until the ballot is closed. All negative votes must be accompanied by a written explanation, and shall be reported to ANSI Accreditation Committee members. ANSI Accreditation Committee members will be provided an opportunity to respond to negative votes by either reaffirming or changing their own votes within two weeks after the ballot closing date.
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All other actions (except those in 12.1) may be taken by a simple majority of the voting
members present at a Committee meeting. In the event a quorum is not present at a
Committee meeting, all substantive decisions made at the meeting must be affirmed by a
letter ballot or at a subsequent Committee meeting at which a quorum is present.
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If a Committee vote is taken on a specific certification body or subject in which an ANSI
Accreditation Committee member has either a direct or potential conflict of interest, the
member shall abstain from voting, and the abstention shall be noted in the minutes and/or
voting record. In some situations the ANSI Accreditation Committee member shall leave
the room during discussion and not vote. The appropriate action will be determined by
the ANSI Accreditation Committee chair. All members of the ANSI Accreditation
Committee shall have signed Statements of Confidentiality and Conflict of Interest. The
staff secretary shall remind the ANSI Accreditation Committee member of the identified
conflict of interest. In addition, each ANSI Accreditation Committee member has the
obligation to verbally indicate a conflict of interest with any discussion or action.
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Member Participation
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Absence by a Committee member or that member's voting alternate at two or more meetings in one calendar year may be construed by the Committee as a lack of interest in serving on the Committee. The Committee may recommend to the Chairperson of the Conformity Assessment Policy Committee that the appointment of the member or voting alternate to the ANSI Accreditation Committee be terminated.
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Parliamentary Procedure
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On questions of parliamentary procedure not covered by these Procedures, Roberts' Rules of Order (latest edition) shall prevail.
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Confidentiality
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The Accreditation Program shall safeguard confidentiality of all information obtained in
the course of accreditation activities at all levels of the ANSI organization, including any
committees and/or external bodies or individuals acting on the Program's behalf such as
assessors.
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Except as required in this document, information about a particular body shall not be
disclosed to a third party by any ANSI Accreditation Committee participant, ANSI staff,
ANSI agents, Accreditation Program subcommittees, task group participants or by any
ANSI subcontractors without the written consent of the body. Where the law requires
information to be disclosed to a third party, the body shall be notified that such
information has been provided.
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All members of the ANSI Accreditation Committee shall have signed Statements of
Confidentiality and Conflict of Interest.
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Amendments
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The ANSI Board of Directors, in accordance with Section 6.09 of Article VI of the ANSI Bylaws, may make changes in these Procedures at any time, after consultation with or upon recommendation of the ANSI Accreditation Committee and /or the Conformity Assessment Policy Committee.
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